Signaling mechanism for railway-switches.



S. L. NEELY.

SIGNALING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY SWITCHES.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 21. 1915.

1 205,008 Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

S. L. NEELY.

SIGNALING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY SWITCHES. APPLICATION FILED APR. 21.1915.

1 ,2055008. Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

SAMUEL L. NEELY, OF LONGTON, KANSAS.

SIGNALING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY-SWITCHES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

Application filed April 21, 1915. Serial No. 22,817.

To all whom it may'conccrn:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL L. NEELY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Longton, in the county of Elk and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signaling Mechanism for Railway-Switches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention relates to improvements in signaling mechanisms for railway switches.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of signaling mechanism for railway switches and to provide a simple, practical, and comparatively inexpensive electrical attachment adapted to be readily applied to switch operating mechanism and capable of opening automatically an electric circuit when the railway switch is open and of maintaining such electrical circuit in an open condition for operating signals to indicate the open switch until such railway switch is closed and locked so that when the signal or signals connected with such circuit are in a safety position an engineer may be assured that the switches connected therewith are not only closed but locked.

A further object of the invention is to provide an electrical attachment of this character adapted, when the switch is open and unless held against movement by the switchman, to close an auxiliary circuit for operating train stopping mechanism having a normally open track circuit.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims hereto appended, it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings Figure 1 isa plan view partly in section illustrating the arrangement of theparts when the switch is open, Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the switch mechanism taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is an elevation partly in section illustrating the arrangement of the parts when the switch is closed and locked, Fig. 4. is a horizontal sectional view on the line 4l1 of Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is a detail vertical sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, Fig. 6 is a plan view on a reduced scale, illustrating the manner of operating the railway switch.

Like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawing. In the accompanying drawings in which is illustrated the preferred embodiment of the invention, 1 designates a switch stand provided at the top with a table 2 having notches 3 and at adapted to receive the pivoted handle 5 of a switch operating lever 6 when the switch is in its closed and open position.

The switch operating lever, which is suitably secured to the stafi or shaft 7 is provided with a longitudinal opening 8 in which the handle 5 is pivoted by a pin or bolt 9. The pin or bolt 9 which pivots the handle 5 to the body portion of the switch operating lever 6 is located at the outer end of the said body portion and it passes through the arm 5 at a point intermediate of the ends thereof to cause the inner portion 10 of the arm or handle 5 to project upwardly above the pivot when the said handle 5 is swung downwardly into the notches 3 and 4.

Theinner portion 10 of the handle 5 carries a staple or loop 11 forming a lock receiving member and adapted to be engaged by the shackle 12 of a pad lock 13 which is adapted to be also engaged with an arm or keeper 14: having an opening 15 for the said shackle. The keeper which may be of any desired construction is shown pivoted to a bracket 16 so as to be swung upward and downward into and out of operative position so as to lie out of the path of the arm or handle of the switch operating lever.

Mounted upon the table 2 of the switch stand is a casing 17 constructed of any suitable material and provided adjacent to the edge of the table 2 and at one side of the notch or recess 3 with a slot 18 through which extends a switch arm 19 pivoted at its inner end 20 and carrying a finger21;

The finger 21 which is arranged exteriorly of the casing 17 is adapted to lie across or in front of the notch or recess 3 so that the switch arm must be moved backwardly to 7 switch operating lever of the railroad carry the finger 21 awayfrom the notch or recess 3 in order to swing the handle of the switch downwardly into engagement with the said notch or recess 3. The finger which projects laterally from the switch operating arm is relatively small and is adapted to- 7 means of a coiled spring 22 housed within the housing 17 and interposed between the outer wall thereof and the switch arm 19 as clearly lllustrated in Figs. 1 and 4 of the drawings.

The spring arm 19 and move the same automatically to its open position when the said switch arm is free to move by reason of the railway swltch having been left open or the lock thereof being removed from the staple- .11 and not having been replaced therein.

It will thus be seen that in order to retain the switch arm 19 in its closed position it is necessary not only to close the switch but to lock the same. Y 1

The electric switch operated arm 19 is of a length to extend beyondthe handle 5 of the railwayswitch operated lever 6 so that the electric switchoperating arm 19 may be held in its closed position by a slight pres, sure of the body of a person while such person is unlocking the-railway. switch operating lever and is swinging the handle portion thereof upwardly 'to a horizontal position or is relocking such railway switch operating lever 6. After the switchman has unlocked the switch operating lever 6 he walks away from the electric switch operatingarm 19 inswinging the said lever 6 horizontally to carry the same from the notch or recess 3, to the notch or recess 4 to open the switch.

' lock in the staple and the keeper, the switch without detection.

arm 19 would be moved toits .open position.

It will thus be seen that it will be impossible forthe switch to be accidentally left open or through negligence left unlocked The switch arm 19carries blade 23secured to and disposed transversely of the switch arm and extending from opposite sides thereof to coactwith a pair of main contacts 24 connected byshort wires25 with the; terminals of wires 26 of a closed circuit including. a signal, not shown, which is 'movable to a danger POSltlOIl' when the circuit is broken by the opening movement of the switch arm 19. The contacts 24 consist ofspaced plates and provide a sliding con 22 is adapted to actuate the tact engagement with the blade 23 which extends between the contact plates 2%. The plates 24: which are resilient to yieldably embrace the knife have their terminals 27 bent outwardly to form a flaring mouth or entrance.

The slot 18 limits the movement of the switch arm 19 and prevents the same from being pushediback too far and when the switch arm is moved to its open position the knife is carried into engagement with a pair of auxiliary contacts 28 connected by short wires 29 with wires 30 which are designed to constitute portions of a circuit adapted when closed to operatetrain stopping-mechanism.

It will be seen that the'electrical attachment for railway switches is exceedingly simple and inexpensive in its construction, that it is adapted to be readily applied to switch stands andthat it is capable unless held against movement by the switchman of opening a normally closed circuit when the railway switchis open and of maintaining such normally closed circuit in an open con dition until the railway switch is closed and locked. It will also be clear that under such conditions the device is adapted to close an auxiliary'circuit when the main circuit is open so that mechanism may be operated for positively stopping a train should an engineer fail to heed the signal showing the switch to be 0 en.

It will also e clear that'when the switch operating lever is moved to its closed position and locked'the switch operating arm 19 will be carried to its closed position and maintained therein with the normally closed circuit in a closed condition.

hat is claimed is 1. The combination with a railway switch having an operating lever provided with a lock receiving member and an electrical switch. having an operating arm automatically'movable in the'direction of the opening movement of the operating lever to open a circuit and provided with means arranged in the path of the operating lever and adapted to extend through the lock receiving member when the operating lever is in its closed position, whereby it will be necessary to insert a lock in the said member in order to maintain the electric switch closed.

2. The combination with a railway switch includinga switch stand having a notch and an operating lever having a pivoted handle adapted to swing into the said notch when the switch is closed, said handle being provided with a lock receiving member, of an electric switch having anoperating arm an:

tomatically movable in the direction of the position and adapted also to extend through the lock receiving member of the handle of the said lever whereby when the operating lever is moved to its closed position and locked it will maintain the operating arm of the switch in position for closing the said circuit.

3. The combination with a switch stand, including a table having a notch and a switch operating lever provided with a pivoted handle arranged to swing into the said notch when the switch is closed, a lock receiving member carried by the said handle, an electric switch having an operating arm automatically movable in the direction of the opening movement of the operating lever to a position to open a cir cuit and provided with a finger located in front of the said notch when the switch operating arm is in its open position and being of a size to extend through the lock receiving member, said finger being adapted to be engaged by a lock to maintain the said operating arm in position for closing the circuit.

4. The combination with a railway switch including a stand having a notch, and an operating lever having a pivoted handle adaptedto swing into the said notch, of a pivoted spring actuated switch operating arm provided with a finger adapted to be moved to a position in front of the said notch when the switch operating lever is actuated to open the switch, a blade carried by the pivoted arm and spaced contacts arranged to receive the blade between them for closing a circuit.

5. The combination with a switch stand having a notch and including an operating lever provided with a pivoted handle arranged to swing into the notch, said handle having a lock receiving member, of a pivoted switch arm pro-vided with a finger adapted on the forward movement of the switch arm to be moved to a position in front of the said notch, a spring for automatically actuating the arm to move the finger to such position when the railwav switch is open, a blade carried by the said arm and projecting in opposite directions therefrom, main con tacts arranged in the path of and engaged by the said blade when the switch arm is at the limit of its backward movement to close a normally closed circuit and auxiliary contacts arranged in the path of the said blade and adapted to be engaged by the same when the pivoted switch arm is at the limit of its forward movement to close a normally open circuit.

6. The combination with a railway switch including a stand having a notch and an opcrating lever provided with a pivoted hanv dle adapted to swing into the said notch of a casing mounted on the stand adjacent to the notch and provided with a slot, a pivoted switch arm extending through the slot and provided with a finger adapted to project in front of the notch, a spring for moving the pivoted switch arm to such position automatically and fixed and movable contacts, the movable contact being carried by the said arm to open and close the circuit when the pivoted switch arm is moved back and forth.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature inpresence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL L. NEELY.

Witnesses OGDEN CARR. FRANK WHITMER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. O. 

